A Fine Line
by Eclipse of Light
Summary: When Boq met Elphaba for the first time, he was surprised at how nice she really was. But could he really be her friend? Rating subject to change. Based on the musical.
1. Beauty and Brains

_Hey! This is the fanfic I decided to write based on Wicked, because I loved that play. It stars Boq, who I am completely and totally in love with. Enjoy!!_

**Chapter 1**

He wasn't sure what to make of her. The young girl in the wheelchair seemed nice enough, but something made him wary of her. She was the beautifully tragic girl he'd heard about, but there was something beautifully dangerous about her, as well.

And then there was the rumor of her sister.

He'd seen the green girl around school, and even shared Dr. Dillamond's class with her, but he'd never actually talked to her. He was actually rather afraid of her. He had no reason to be. She'd never done anything to him. But the fact that she was actually his beautiful date's sister was unbelievable. How could two people who were supposed to be related be so dramatically and drastically different?

So when he saw the girl in the wheelchair in the university courtyard, he decided to ask her a few questions.

"Hey, Nessarose," he said sheepishly. She was very pretty. But he loved Galinda.

"Oh, hi Boq!" the girl said, her face lighting up, "How are you?"

"Uh, fine," said Boq, trying not to make eye contact, "I was wondering something, actually."

"Oh, really? What?"

"It's about that, uh, green girl I've seen around school."

Nessarose sighed, "Oh, her. What about her?"

"Well, I heard rumors--"

Suddenly the girl grabbed his hand. He blushed. He was nervous, and therefore pretty clammy, "Boq, it is not right to spread rumors. Whatever you've heard about Elphaba, you cannot spread it around the school. It would absolutely destroy her! And me."

"Why you?"

"She is my sister, you know. Anything bad said about her automatically comes back onto me."

"She is your sister?"

"Yes, Boq! Didn't you know that?"

"No. That's what I was going to ask you about, actually," he paused, "She's your sister?"

Nessarose chuckled, "Yes, Boq. She's my sister. She's older than me by about two years. Why?"

"Oh, it's just that...well...she's...green."

"Yes, she's green."

"And you're...not."

Nessarose chuckled again, "No, I'm not."

Boq nodded, "Of course you're not. I'm sorry, I just find it a little hard to believe. That you two are sisters, I mean."

"Well, I take that as a good sign, believe me. I mean, I love her to death, but I don't want to be anything like her. She's a little strange. Always has been," she looked up at the giant clock on the tower and smiled, "I'm sorry, Boq. I have to go. We're still going to the Ozdust Ball together, aren't we?"

"Of course," then, as a last minute thing: "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Nessarose's deep blue eyes lit up and she smiled with a zillion bright white teeth, "I'll see you then," her voice was so soft that Boq could barely hear it. He waved as she wheeled herself away, immediately regretting the words that had come out of his mouth. He really shouldn't lead her on this way. He chuckled to himself. He was the last person in the world he would expect to lead anyone on. Especially someone as pretty as Nessarose.

She turned around suddenly and yelled back, "Hey, Boq? You can call me Nessa, if you want."

She smiled again and turned around. Boq smiled back feebly and turned to go back to his dorm.

On the far side of the courtyard, sitting on a bench beside the door, was Elphaba Thropp. He found himself staring at her. There was something about her that was pretty, now that he really looked at her. She had beautiful hair, that was for sure.

He had been staring at her when she looked up. He quickly looked away to avoid confrontation. He hated confrontation.

"Hey!" he heard her yell. He tried to get to the door, but found her blocking the way, "Hey, what are you staring at?" she glared at him with an intensity he'd never seen before. If there was ever a time he wished he were taller, now would be it.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend," he said.

"You're Boq, aren't you?" she asked.

He looked up at her, temporarily confused, "Uh...yes. Why?"

Elphaba's expression softened, and slowly her jaw unclenched, "Thank you for taking Nessa to the Ozdust Ball. I appreciate it greatly. She doesn't get a lot of attention from boys because they're put off by her beauty, and the chair, of course."

"Uh, well, I didn't exactly...um..."

"Yeah, I know Galinda told you to ask her. But you didn't have to, and that's why I'm saying thank you."

Boq smiled, "You're welcome. Nessarose is very nice, by the way."

Elphaba smiled back, which surprised him, "Yeah. She's incredibly sweet," she turned around and picked her books up from the bench, "I guess I'll see you around, Boq."

"Yeah, sure."

Elphaba went off on her way, leaving a stunned Boq behind. Elphaba Thropp was much nicer than he'd expected. Even sweet, in a strange way. He did hope to see her again.

* * *

The next day, it rained terribly, flooding the grounds and making it incredibly dark and gloomy in the university itself. Boq walked into his history class, waved a quick hello to the old Goat at the chalkboard, and sat down. It was with terrible luck that Fiyero, the new boy from the day before, walked in and sat down right next to him.

"Hey, there, Biq," he said, putting his feet up on the desk in front of him.

"Uh, hi," Boq said. He didn't feel like correcting the pompous prince in the pronunciation of his name.

He tried to make himself busy adjusting the books on his desk; anything to avoid talking to Fiyero. Just then, Elphaba walked in, and the whispers began.

To Boq's complete and utter surprise, Fiyero leaned over to him and asked, "So...what do you know about this Elphaba?"

"What?" Boq asked.

"I saw you talking to her yesterday, and you're going to the Ozdust ball with her sister, aren't you?"

"So that automatically makes me her best friend?"

"Well, I just figured---"

"For your information, Fiyero, yesterday was the first time Elphaba and I have ever spoken since we've been here. I've only just found out that Nessarose is her sister. I share this one class with her, and that's it. I know nothing about her," his eyes flickered to the pretty, busty blonde at the front of the class, "Besides, you're going with Galinda, aren't you? Why do you want to know anything about Elphaba?"

"Because I think it's strange that she's green. Don't you? I mean, green is not a normal skin color, is it? And isn't her father the Governor of Munchkinland? The Governor Frexspar Thropp, right?"

Boq stared at the prince. Never had it occurred to him that the sisters were the daughters of the Governor of Munchkinland. Sure, the last names matched, but he'd never made the connection.

"What?" Fiyero asked, "You didn't know?" he chuckled, "How can a Munchkinlander not know the daughters of the Governor of Munchkinland? Isn't that a bit odd?"

Dr. Dillamond called the class into session, and Fiyero sat back in his chair, making himself comfortable. Boq was sure the spoiled prince would fall asleep. Why else would he be sprawled out like that?

Elphaba, who had been talking to the Goat before class, suddenly appeared beside Boq, "Is this seat taken? All the others are filled."

"Oh, no, it's not taken. Go ahead," Boq said with a smile. Elphaba sat down and began to take notes. Boq listened, but didn't take notes. He usually remembered the most important things later when the class had a test.

* * *

After class, Boq made his way to the cafeteria. He ordered himself some lunch and began to look for a place to sit. He saw Elphaba sitting alone at a table in the far corner and asked if he could join her.

"You want to sit with me?" Elphaba asked, but moved her stuff anyway.

Boq took his seat and began to eat.

"So, are you going to the Ozdust Ball tonight?" he asked her.

Elphaba stared at him over the rims of her glasses, "No. I don't dance."

"What are you talking about? Everybody dances."

"I don't. Never have. Besides, I don't have a date."

"You don't need a date to go."

"If I don't have a date, I'll be spending all night sitting against the wall watching all the happy couples do their dopey slow dances," she returned her attention to her papers, "I don't dance, and I'm not going."

"Would you go if I saved a dance for you?" Boq asked before he could stop himself.

Elphaba's head snapped up and she stared at him in surprise, "But you're going with Nessarose."

"Yeah, but we're not an official couple. I'm sure she'd understand if I danced with you."

"And I'm sure she wouldn't. Boq, she is madly in love with you. It sounds strange, but it's true. Please don't break her heart because of me."

Boq looked around, then leaned in toward Elphaba and whispered, "I'm not in love with her. I asked her because...because..." it occurred to him then that he had no other reason than that he felt sorry for her. And he couldn't say that in front of Elphaba.

"You only asked her because Galinda asked you to," said Elphaba, "I know that. But she doesn't have to, Boq. She doesn't get things like this often. A boy asking her out is a rarity. People don't know how to handle her, so she doesn't get many dates."

"I understand that, Elphaba, but she needs to know that I'm not in love with her."

"So tell her after the dance. Not before, and definitely not during. Nessarose has no problem with creating a scene," she placed her hand on top of Boq's and whispered, "Please be careful around her Boq. She can be a little intense sometimes. Don't let her guilt you into doing something you don't want to do," she smiled, "She has a way of doing that."

Boq nodded, "I understand," he smiled. What had he gotten himself into?

"Hey, I gotta go," said Elphaba, standing up and gathering her stuff, "but good luck tonight. And remember to try not to hurt her too bad, ok? She's my sister, and I don't like to see her distraught."

Boq nodded and waved a goodbye at the green girl as she walked away. Once again, he found himself thinking about what he'd gotten himself into. He was going to the ball with a clingy girl in a wheelchair, had just asked her sister to the dance as his second date, and he half believed he had just been threatened by Nessarose's older sister. He sighed. This was going to be a long night.

_So, what do you think? Please review, but do not post any flames, please. If you don't like the story, then don't read it. Thanx for reading, guys! The next chapter will be up soon._


	2. The Ozdust Ball

_OK, second chapter. I think I fixed the little glitch in the first chapter, so there shouldn't be any more boxey-things anymore. Anyway, enjoy!_

The dance hall was flooded with people gathered into large groups. Boq and Nessarose had found a small corner to themselves, where they could watch the rest of the hall, and where Boq could keep an eye on Galinda and Fiyero. He hadn't seen Elphaba. She must really not be coming.

"Boq, are you ok?" Nessarose asked, touching his hand. Boq jumped and tugged at his collar.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Nessarose," he said, "Thank you."

"Why did you really ask me here?"

The question threw him off guard, "What?"

"Well, I was talking to some of Galinda's friends. They said that you asked me because you felt sorry for me. Is that true?"

"No! No, Nessa, of course not! Why would you even think that?"

Nessarose looked at the table and fidgeted with the cup of punch in her hands, "You haven't talked to me all night."

Boq leaned forward and put his hand on top of Nessarose's, "Nessa, Galinda's friends are just mean. You shouldn't listen to them."

Nessarose smiled bashfully at him and batted her eyes, "Thank you, Boq. You're really sweet."

Boq chuckled nervously. Elphaba wasn't kidding about her. She really seemed to be in love with him, "Hey, you know what? We should dance."

Nessarose chucked, "What?"

"Yeah. We should dance. After all, it's a ball, isn't it? And I am here with one of the most beautiful girls in school. So, what do you say?"

Nessa looked around, "Boq, I can't dance. Look at me!"

Boq stood up and moved in behind her, "All you have to do, is follow my lead," and with that, he pushed her out onto the dance floor.

And they danced. Nessarose looked so happy, and Boq, for one split second, felt happy with her. Then Elphaba walked in.

She was wearing a dark blue frock, those heavy brown boots she always wore, and the most hideous black hat Boq had ever seen. The music stopped as the entire room turned to face her, and a spotlight swiveled toward her. She looked around, and the laughter began. Nessarose went red with embarassment. Boq knew that she wasn't embarassed for her sister, but for herself. The happyness he had felt for the girl in the wheelchair melted away, to be replaced with the usual dread for her.

Elphaba moved to the middle of the dance floor. She would probably be as red as her sister if her skin wasn't green. Instead, the skin around her cheeks turned to a dark emerald color as she removed the hat.

Boq stared at her, mouth wide open. Where did she get that hat?

She replaced the hat, and began to dance. Nessarose hid her face in her hands and shook her head. Boq could then hear her voice go high as she whispered to herself, "What is she doing? Oh, what is she doing?"

Boq place a hand on Nessarose's shoulder, mainly to calm her down. He was afraid she'd have a heart attack, with as high pitched as her voice was becoming.

Galinda was walking up to her now. The entire dance hall stared in confusion as she began to dance with the green girl. They moved together and twirled around each other in what had soon become a graceful duet. The music started again, a soft, airy melody that rang off the walls. Soon, the confused students began to catch on, and joined in. One by one, they moved back onto the dance floor and began moving like Elphaba and Galinda.

Boq leaned down toward Nessarose, "Are you ok?" he asked her.

Her head was still in her hands, "I can't believe she's doing this to me!" she hissed at him, not looking up.

"Doing what? Look, everybody loves it!"

Nessarose looked up toward the throng of people on the dance floor. Elphaba couldn't even be seen anymore for the crowd that had gathered around her and Galinda. Nessarose sighed, "Can we just go? Please?"

Boq wanted to stay. It was the first dance he'd been to in...well, ever. He was just starting to enjoy himself.

"Nessa, I kinda want to stay."

Nessarose glared at him in a way he didn't even think Elphaba could manage. She wheeled herself around rolled away from him. She went to the corner they had been in all night and sat there, her arms crossed and her eyes narrowed.

"What did you do?" came a voice from behind him. He turned to see Elphaba in all her greeness. The lighting seemed to bring out the color even more, making her almost neon.

"I didn't want to go," Boq said, trying to keep his voice from breaking. He knew he hadn't succeeded.

"Why did she want to go?" Elphaba asked, some of the harshness in her voice gone.

"She saw you come in and...well..."

Elphaba sighed, "She was embarassed, right?"

Boq sighed and nodded. He couldn't bring himself to say it to her. He didn't want to hurt her.

Elphaba put a hand on his shoulder, a gesture that surprised Boq, "Thank you," she said, "For not leaving. I appreciate it alot."

Boq nodded, "Uh, no problem."

Elphaba looked at her sister and smiled, "I'll be right back, Boq. You stay here, ok?"

Boq nodded, and Elphaba walked off toward Nessarose. He watched them, despite himself.

Nessarose seemed really mad, gesturing wildly at Elphaba and the dance floor. Elphaba made little movement, but Boq could tell she was trying to calm Nessarose. Finally, Nessarose crossed her arms, said something like "fine" and hugged Elphaba. When the sisters parted, she had a smile on her face, and the kindness had come back into her eyes. Elphaba walked back to Boq, who's eyes were still on Nessarose.

"Well," said Elphaba, "do you still wanna dance?"

Boq looked up at her, "I'm sorry?"

"Do you still wanna dance with me? You asked me earlier, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. I suppose I did."

"If you don't want to dance, I can always go sit down."

"No, we can dance. As long as you don't mind dancing with someone who's a little shorter."

Elphaba put one hand on his shoulder and held the other out for him to take, "Short but sweet, Boq. Short but sweet."

Boq took her hand and put one of his on her waist. A slow song had just begun, and the two began to dance.

"So...Nessarose said this was ok?" Boq asked.

"No. But you let me worry about her."

"What did you say to her to make her calm down?"

"I just explained to her that everything worked out. She had no reason to be embarassed," she sighed heavily, "Galinda helped it all work out, surprisingly enough."

"Why are you wearing that hat anyway?"

"Galinda gave it to me. She said that it was a gift from the goodness of her heart. I had no idea it was meant as a joke."

"Well, why would she do that?"

"Who knows?" she looked down at him, "Why would she deny you one dance, then set you up with a girl you don't even know?"

"She was going with Fiyero..."

"Yes, but that doesn't give her the right to deny you one dance. Look at Fiyero."

She gestured over to the center of the dance floor, where Fiyero was dancing with one of Galinda's friends, Shen Shen. Galinda sat slumped at a table, arms crossed, staring off into space.

"She could have saved you one dance, Boq," Elphaba said, "Fiyero saved her friends one."

The point Elphaba was trying to make flew over Boq's head once he saw that Galinda was alone. Maybe he could go ask her to dance, and this time she couldn't turn him down.

Elphaba flicked him on the ear. He turned to her again, coming back to reality, "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

She sighed, "Go ask her to dance, Boq."

"What? No, I'm dancing with you."

Elphaba backed away from him, holding a hand out toward Galinda, "Go ask her to dance."

"Elphaba..."

"She's all alone, Boq. She can't refuse."

Before he could protest further, she walked away from him. He took a deep breath. His hands were getting clammy again. Great.

Galinda's hair shimmered in the dancing light. Boq gulped as he walked over to her, and took another deep breath. He had asked her once, he could do it again. What was the worst she could do? Turn him down again?

"Miss Galinda?" he asked, trying to keep his voice from breaking again.

"Oh, hello there, Biq."

"I was wondering...because you're all alone...if maybe...well...if you would maybe dance...with...me?" he'd gotten it out. Now all he had to do was wait for an answer.

Just then the song ended, and Fiyero walked up.

"I'm sorry, Biq, but I'm here with Fiyero," Galinda said, standing up and taking Fiyero's hand, "And you have a date already, remember? Nessarose? Where is she anyway?"

"You didn't abandon her, did you, Biq?" Fiyero asked with a smirk. The two of them walked off, leaving a confused and distressed Boq behind. He looked around and finally ran out of the room, stopping just outside the door. He leaned against the wall with his head in his hands, then sunk to the floor.

"Boq?"

He looked up. It was Elphaba, in all her green glory.

"Are you ok, Boq?"

"Do I look ok?" he asked, perhaps a little more harsh than he wanted to.

"She said no, huh?" Elphaba got on her knees in front of him.

"I just don't understand it! What is so wrong with me that she can't dance with me just once?"

"Boq, the girl can't even get your name right! I mean, you had to have told her a million times and yet she still calls you 'Biq'!"

Boq groaned, "I know! But she's just so beautiful, and I...I love her Elphaba."

Elphaba sighed and chuckled, "Let me see if I can put this into perspective for you. Nessarose says she loves you, but you obviously don't love her, right?"

"Right."

"But you still came here with her, didn't you?"

"What does this have to do with Galinda?"

"You love her, but she apparently doesn't love you. The major difference is that you, Boq, are sweet enough to care anyway. Galinda only cares for herself and her image. That's why she's here with someone as shallow as Fiyero. He's good looking, she's good looking. They make a great couple. He's also rich, which makes him the perfect candidate for Galinda. She doens't want someone sweet and cute, Boq. She wants someone shallow and hot."

Boq chuckled, "I can't believe you just said Fiyero is hot. That doesn't seem like you at all."

"Hey, I never said I thought he was ugly, only shallow and self-centered."

"OK, but I still don't understand your point."

"You're too good for her, Boq," Elphaba said, placing her hand on his shoulder again, "She doens't want you, because she doesn't feel she deserves you."

Boq stared at the floor. He didn't know what to say. He'd never gotten a complement like that before, let alone from a girl.

Elphaba tried to make eye contact, "You know the night's not over yet. Nessa said she wanted to dance again," she stood up, "What do you say? Come inside?"

Boq stood up, "I don't know if I can. Fiyero was there to watch my little display of emotion. He'll make sure I'll never live it down."

"Don't worry about it. Words can only do so much Boq, take it from some one who knows."

Boq knew she was right, of course. She was the only one who would understand, and help with, any kind of teasing that may happen. He chuckedled, then held out his arm for her to take, "Shall we?"

Elphaba looped her arm through his, "Let's!"

They walked back inside, and enjoyed the rest of the night. Galinda even invited them to dance with her little group during a faster song, and her friend, Pfanee, even asked Boq to dance with her. Elphaba was around him the whole night, and quickly changed the subject if Fiyero brought up the embarassment of an attempt to ask Galinda to dance. By the end of the night, Galinda, Fiyero, Shen Shen, Pfanee, Elphaba, Boq, and Nessarose had pushed two tables together so they could sit together. As they left the dance hall at half past two in the morning, Elphaba leaned in to Boq and whispered, "I almost got Galinda to dance with you. Maybe at the next dance I'll have more luck." Boq smiled. Maybe having Elphaba as a friend wasn't such a bad thing.

_OK, please review! No flames, please! Thanx for reading!_


	3. Strange Occurances

_Sorry for the long update! It just took me a while to figure out what should happen next in the story. Enjoy!!_

**Chapter 2**

Boq had seen Elphaba angry before. Hell, on the very first day of school she'd stolen her sister away from Madame Morrible without ever actually touching the wheelchair. He'd seen first hand that she could give glares that could kill even when she wasn't trying to. But he discovered a whole new anger inside Elphaba on the day Dr. Dillamond was taken away from Shiz.

When the Goat had given the announcement that he wouldn't be teaching anymore, there was general confusion amongst the class. He was a good teacher, despite his occasional political ramblings, and he actually taught in an enjoyable way that everyone had learned to love. Sure there were the original misgivings about him being a Goat, but even that had died down after a few days of class with him. No one was happy to hear that he was leaving, but Elphaba had seemed to take it the hardest.

It did seem strange to Boq that they'd brought in a replacement teacher within seconds of Dr. Dillamond being practically dragged away, but this new teacher had mentioned something that he couldn't quite understand, and therefore wanted to learn: The concept of a cage.

Was it possible to use this device to make sure Animals would grow to become animals? It seemed cruel, but everyone was suddenly interested, including Boq. Elphaba, to no one's surprise, was not.

To everyone's surprise however, Fiyero wasn't, either.

Boq could see the two of them at the back of the room, looking on at the other students crowding around the cage. Each of the students were trying to get a good look at the baby lion-- or maybe it was a Lion?-- inside the contraption. Boq could see that Elphaba was visibly flustered, and he decided that he would go over and comfort her. Who cares that Fiyero was standing right there and would probably find something to make fun of him for? Just as he began to go over to her, however, every muscle in his body seemed to tense up, and he suddenly lost all control over the movements he was making. He could see the other students, and even the new teacher, spazzing wildly, and knew he was too. People were beginning to panic. What was going on?

From what little he could see of Elphaba and Fiyero, they seemed to be stealing the cage while everyone writhed around in a silly little dance. As they left the room, the "dance" got more intense, and then suddenly everyone stopped and fell to the floor, regaining control once more.

Boq got up, feeling slightly sick to his stomach as he tried to relieve the tension in his suddenly sore muscles. He looked around. Sure enough, the cage was gone. So were Elphaba and Fiyero.

He ran out of the room, trying to catch up to them and find out what the hell had just happened, when he ran into Galinda, who was late to class.

"Hey, watch it!" Galinda said, straightening her dress and smoothing her hair.

"Sorry," Boq said curtly, for once not looking to impress the pretty blonde, "Did you see Elphaba come through here?"

Galinda shook her head, "No. Why?"

"Something strange just happened in there," Boq explained as he looked past Galinda and down both sides of the hallway.

"What?"

"It's kind of a long story. The first thing you should know is that Dr. Dillamond won't be teaching here anymore."

Galinda feigned her surprise, "Really? Why not?" She had been the only student not impressed with Dr. Dillamond in any way. She didn't really care one way or another for the Goat's welfare.

"I don't know," Boq said, noting the fake emotion on Galinda's face and resenting it deeply, "but some guards came in and just dragged him out of the classroom."

"Well, is there another teacher or is the class cancelled?"

"They brought in another teacher just after Dillamond was taken away."

Galinda's face fell in disappointment, "Oh."

"Are you sure you didn't see her?" Boq asked.

Just then, the classroom door opened and a line of flustered students walked out. Galinda met Pfanee and Shen Shen, who were visibly shaken and had even begun to cry.

"What happened?" Galinda asked as her two friends clung to each other as if they were trying to hold each other up. Boq rolled his eyes. Those two could make a bad hair day into an international crises. For crying out loud, they weren't hurt!

"It's your _friend,_ the String Bean!" Shen Shen spat.

"She totally went off the deep end!" Pfanee cried, tears streaming down her face.

Galinda looked confused, "What?"

"She just made everyone in there go completely crazy!"

"We lost all control of our bodies!"

Now Galinda looked almost angry that her friends were speaking about Elphaba in this way, "What are you talking about?"

Boq stepped in now, holding his hands up, "Hold on, now. We don't know Elphaba was behind this."

The girls looked at him like they could burn a hole straight through him. Galinda scoffed, "He's right, you know."

Boq looked back at the perky blonde in surprise. Had she actually just agreed with him? Well this was a step in the right direction.

"Galinda, we lost all control!" Shen Shen yelled. It almost sounded as though she were pleading with Galinda to stop listening to Boq.

"She was so upset over that stupid lion!" Pfanee agreed.

Galinda looked confused again and turned her gaze toward Boq, "Lion? What lion?"

Boq sighed, "The new teacher brought in a baby lion or Lion, I don't know. Anyway, he was talking about something called a cage and how it could keep Animals from ever learning to speak, therfore turning them into animals."

Galinda gaped at him, "What?"

Boq nodded, "Yeah. He kept going on and on and the lion in the cage was crying and freaking out."

"That's just cruel! Animals shouldn't have their abilities taken away!"

Pfanee and Shen Shen looked at her as though they had just witnessed her commit a capital murder, "What?"

"Well, it's true! I might not like the stinking things, but I would never make one give up it's ability to speak."

Boq was genuinely surprised. He was looking at her as though he had just witnessed her sprout a second head or a third arm. Pfanee and Shen Shen were still looking as though she had suddenly become a fellon.

Galinda glanced between all of them, "What?"

Shen Shen scoffed, "The Artichoke did this to you, didn't she?"

"She has a name you know," Boq said.

"No one cares!" Pfanee spat at him.

Galinda stepped between Boq and the girls, looking thouroughly pissed off, "Her name is Elphaba! And she didn't do anything to me! This is what I believe all on my own!" She looked genuinely proud of herself that someone hadn't had to tell her what to believe for once.

Boq put a hand on her shoulder, "We should go find her."

Galinda nodded in agreement, but shrugged his hand off her shoulder, "Yeah, let's go make sure she's ok."

"But, Galinda, what about us?"

Galinda shot her friends a look that could've killed if she'd had any magical abilities, "You don't like Elphaba, you can take care of yourselves!" She turned to face Boq, "Let's go, Biq."

And with that, she stomped off down the hall, Boq following. As he fell in step behind the slightly taller blonde, he wondered if she'd ever get his name right...


End file.
